Man whopoisoneddeer facesstate fine

A Ferndale man who was caught poisoning deer was recently slapped with another fine - this time from the Montana Department of Agriculture.

Colin Reis, 39, was fined $700 for misuse of pesticides by the Department of Agriculture on April 21. Reis paid the fine on May 11, according to Leonard Berry, the department's pesticide program manager.

Berry said his department determined that the actions of Reis violated the Montana Pesticides Act, leading to a stiffer fine than the one levied in justice court.

Reis pleaded guilty on March 25 in Flathead County Justice Court to a general game violation for poisoning deer.

His fine of $85 drew howls of protest from neighbors and others who considered it to be far too lenient.

Justice of the Peace David Ortley later explained that at the time of sentencing, he had no details of the circumstances that led to Reis being cited by a Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks warden.

Ortley also gave Reis a deferred jail sentence of one year if he remains law-abiding.

The case came to the attention of warden Chuck Bartos after a woman reported that a deer was having convulsions in her driveway on Aero Lane near the Ferndale airstrip.

The deer was still alive when Bartos arrived, but it was put down on the spot because it was so sick.

The carcass was taken to the state wildlife laboratory in Bozeman for a necropsy, which determined that the doe had strychnine in her stomach.

Based on interviews with Reis and neighbors, Bartos concluded that Reis had been poisoning deer for several years because "he didn't want them in his yard eating his landscaping."

In this particular instance, Bartos reported that Reis had put a box of gopher poison on the ground that ended up attracting deer. Neighbors were upset, saying they had no idea how many deer - or even pets, or animals that feed on deer - may have been poisoned over time.

Reporter Jim Mann may be reached at 758-4407 or by e-mail at jmann@dailyinterlake.com